An untempered view of lobbying in Europe

The debate on lobbying transparency in Brussels is entering a crucial phase, with the inter-institutional working group taking forward plans to encourage transparency.

The intervention of David Coen and Jeremy Richardson in European Voice (“A commitment to consultation”, 17-23 September) offers an optimism about the Brussels lobbying scene seemingly untempered by the empirical reality of Brussels.

They argue that we should be relaxed about the status quo because the EU has one of the most open, transparent and pluralistic lobbying systems in Europe. But it does not follow that a formally open political system is inclusive or, indeed, transparent. The EU system is open, but only to the extent that groups have the resources and status to participate.

Resource-rich organisations (mainly big business) have a structural

advantage in terms of their access to and influence on decision-makers. In addition, the ingrained pro-business assumptions of the European Commission filter out even those citizen groups that can muster sufficient resources to participate.

Moreover, to suggest that the Brussels system is “one of the most open and transparent lobbying systems in Europe” is faint praise indeed. Lobbying regulation is patently underdeveloped across the continent – as

a recent Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development analysis shows.

Coen and Richardson say the current status quo is “perfectly normal”. This may be true, but the fact that corporate lobbyists gain undue influence in policymaking across the continent is hardly a sign that the democratic system is in good health.

One reason we have not had US-style lobbying scandals is that there are no ‘national’ EU media to hold to account the institutional corruption fostered by cosy relationships with corporate lobbyists.

Another is that we do not have even the minimum transparency needed to be able to ‘follow the money’ of lobbying campaigns. The current voluntary disclosure regime is pitiful in comparison to the US system. For example, it would not be possible for an EU equivalent of a public-interest initiative such as OpenSecrets.org to report on EU lobbying because the information necessary is simply not in the public domain. To rectify this, it is obvious that a mandatory lobbying register is an urgent necessity.